Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE)

The 70 CE siege of Jerusalem was a Roman response to the Great Jewish Revolt , in which Jewish Zealots rose up against their Roman occupiers, attacking patrols, and eventually occupying the Temple , as well as the abandoned Roman forts of Masada and Herodion. Ultimately, Rome was forced to send more legions, in an attempt to quell the uprisings. Despite early successes in repelling the Roman sieges, the Zealots fought among themselves, lacking proper leadership, discipline, training, and preparation for the battles that were to follow. Titus surrounded the city, with three legions on the western side, and a fourth on the Mount of Olives to the east. He put pressure on the food & water supplies of the inhabitants by allowing pilgrims to enter the city to celebrate Passover , and then refusing them egress. After Jewish sallies killed a number of Roman soldiers, Titus sent Flavius Josephus , a former Jewish commander, now loyal to Rome, to negotiate with the defenders; this failed, and another sally was launched. In mid-May, Titus set to destroying the newly built Third Wall with a ram, breaching it as well as the Second Wall, and turning their attention to the Fortress of Antonia, just north of the Temple Mount . The Romans were then drawn into street fighting with the Zealots and sustained heavy enough losses that they were ordered to retreat. Flavius Josephus failed in another attempt at negotiations, and Jewish attacks prevented the construction of siege towers at the Fortress of Antonia. Food, water, and other provisions were dwindling, but small foraging parties managed to sneak supplies into the city, harrying Roman forces in the process. A new wall was ordered to be built, to put an end to the success of these foragers, and siege tower construction was restarted as well. After several failed attempts to breach or scale the walls of the Fortress, the Romans finally launched a secret attack, overwhelming sleeping Zealot guards and taking the Fortress. This was the second highest ground in the city, after the Temple Mount, and provided a perfect point from which to attack the Temple itself. Battering rams made little progress, but the fighting itself eventually set the walls on fire. Destroying the Temple was not among Titus' goals, possibly due in large part to the massive expansions done by Herod mere decades earlier. Most likely, Titus had wanted to seize it and transform it into a pagan temple, dedicated to the Roman Emperor and to the Roman pantheon . But the flames spread quite quickly and were soon unquenchable. The Temple was destroyed on Tisha B'Av , at the end of August, and as the flames spread into the residential sections of the city, along with the Roman legions, Jewish resistance crumbled quickly. The city was completely under Roman control by the 7th of September. Although this did not fully cement Roman control over the region, and the Jewish Revolt was not fully suppressed, the seizure of Jerusalem and destruction of the Temple represents the end of an independently controlled Palestine; it passed from Roman hands to the Arabs , then the Ottomans , and finally the British before becoming an independent state once again in 1948 . The destruction of the Temple is still mourned annually as the Jewish holiday Tisha B'Av , and the Arch of Titus in Rome , depicting & celebrating the sack of Jerusalem and the Temple, still stands in Rome .

The Siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD was the decisive event of the First Jewish–Roman War . The Roman army, led by the future Emperor Titus , with Tiberius Julius Alexander as his second-in-command, besieged and conquered the city of Jerusalem , which had been occupied by its Jewish defenders in 66 AD . The siege ended with the sacking of the city and the destruction of its famous Second Temple . The destruction of both the first and second temples is still mourned annually as the Jewish fast Tisha B'Av . The Arch of Titus , celebrating the Roman sack of Jerusalem and the Temple, still stands in Rome .

Siege of Jerusalem by Roman army in 70 CE For other sieges upon the city of Jerusalem, see Siege of Jerusalem . Many of the casualties were observant Jews from across the world such as Babylon and Egypt who had travelled to Jerusalem wanting to celebrate the yearly Passover but instead got trapped in the chaotic siege. He also writes that 97,000 were enslaved. The Roman army, led by the future Emperor Titus , with Tiberius Julius Alexander as his second-in-command, besieged and conquered the city of Jerusalem , which had been controlled by Judean rebel factions since 66 CE, following the Jerusalem riots of 66 , when the Judean provisional government was formed in Jerusalem. The siege of the city began on 14 April 70 CE, three days before the beginning of Passover that year. The siege lasted for about four months; it ended in August 70 CE on Tisha B'Av with the burning and destruction of the Second Temple . The Romans then entered and sacked the Lower City. The Arch of Titus , celebrating the Roman sack of Jerusalem and the Temple, still stands in Rome . The conquest of the city was complete on approximately 8 September 70 CE. Josephus places the siege in the second year of Vespasian , which corresponds to year 70 of the Common Era . BJ . 6.9.3. , Perseus Project BJ6.9.3 , . The destruction of both the First and Second Temples is still mourned annually during the Jewish fast of Tisha B'Av .

Part of the First Jewish–Roman War For the siege by Nebuchadnezzar that led to the destruction of the First Temple, see Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC) . The siege of Jerusalem of 70 CE was the decisive event of the First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE), in which the Roman army led by future emperor Titus besieged Jerusalem , the center of Jewish rebel resistance in the Roman province of Judaea . Following a five-month siege, the Romans destroyed the city and the Second Jewish Temple . In April 70 CE, three days before Passover , the Roman army started besieging Jerusalem. The city had been taken over by several rebel factions following a period of massive unrest and the collapse of a short-lived provisional government . Within three weeks, the Roman army broke the first two walls of the city, but a stubborn rebel standoff prevented them from penetrating the thickest and third wall. According to Josephus , a contemporary historian and the main source for the war, the city was ravaged by murder, famine and cannibalism . On Tisha B'Av , 70 CE (August 30), Roman forces overwhelmed the defenders and set fire to the Temple. Resistance continued for another month, but eventually the upper and lower parts of the city were taken as well, and the city was burned to the ground. Titus spared only the three towers of the Herodian citadel as a testimony to the city's former might. The siege had a major toll on human life, with many people being killed and enslaved, and large parts of the city destroyed. This victory gave the Flavian dynasty legitimacy to claim control over the empire. A triumph was held in Rome to celebrate the fall of Jerusalem, and two triumphal arches were built to commemorate it. The treasures looted from the Temple were put on display. The destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple marked a major turning point in Jewish history . The loss of mother-city and temple necessitated a reshaping of Jewish culture to ensure its survival. Judaism's Temple-based sects, including the priesthood and the Sadducees , diminished in importance. A new form of Judaism that became known as Rabbinic Judaism developed out of Pharisaic school and eventually became the mainstream form of the religion. Many followers of Jesus of Nazareth also survived the city's destruction. They spread his teachings across the Roman Empire, giving rise to the new religion of Christianity . After the war had ended, a military camp of Legio X Fretensis was established on the city's ruins. Jerusalem was later re-founded as the Roman colony of Aelia Capitolina . Foreign cults were introduced and Jews were forbidden entry. This event is often considered one of the catalysts for the Bar Kokhba revolt . Aelia Capitolina – Jerusalem in the Roman period: in light of archaeological research . The historical description is consistent with the archeological finds. Collapses of massive stones from the walls of the Temple Mount were exposed lying over the Herodian street running along the Western Wall of the Temple Mount. The residential buildings of the Ophel and the Upper City were destroyed by great fire. The large urban drainage channel and the Pool of Siloam in the Lower City silted up and ceased to function, and in many places the city walls collapsed. [...] Following the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE, a new era began in the city's history. The Herodian city was destroyed and a military camp of the Tenth Roman Legion established on part of the ruins. In c. 130 CE , the Roman emperor Hadrian founded a new city in place of Herodian Jerusalem next to the military camp. He honored the city with the status of a colony and named it Aelia Capitolina and possibly also forbidding Jews from entering its boundaries Westwood, Ursula (1 April 2017). The Lower City of Jerusalem on the Eve of Its Destruction, 70 CE: A View From Hanyon Givati" . A Dictionary of the Roman Empire . The destruction of both the First and Second Temples is still mourned annually during the Jewish fast of Tisha B'Av . Rome and Jerusalem: The Clash of Ancient Civilizations . The capitulation of the rest of Jerusalem was rapid. Those parts of the lower city already under Roman control were deliberately set on fire. The erection of new towers to break down the walls of the upper city was completed on 7 Elul (in mid-August), and the troops forced their way in. By 8 Elul the whole city was in Roman hands – and in ruins. In recompense for the ferocious fighting they had been required to endure, the soldiers were given free rein to loot and kill, until eventually Titus ordered that the city be razed to the ground, 'leaving only the loftiest of the towers, Phasael, Hippicus and Mariamme, and the portion of the wall enclosing the city on the west: the latter as an encampment for the garrison that was to remain, and the towers to indicate to posterity the nature of the city and of the strong defences which had yet yielded to Roman prowess. All the rest of the wall encompassing the city was so completely levelled to the ground as to leave future visitors to the spot no ground for believing that it had ever been inhabited.' Neusner, Jacob (28 November 2017). Until the modern period, the destruction of the Temple was the most cataclysmic moment in the history of the Jewish people. Without the Temple, the Sadducees no longer had any claim to authority, and they faded away. The sage Yochanan ben Zakkai, with permission from Rome, set up the outpost of Yavneh to continue develop of Pharisaic, or rabbinic, Judaism. Journal of the American Academy of Religion . Aelia Capitolina – Jerusalem in the Roman Period . After the destruction of the Herodian city of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE, a military camp of the Tenth Roman Legion was established on part of the ruins to guard the former center of the revolt. This is clearly stated by Josephus (Jos. BJ, 7:1–5, 17; Vita, 422); it can be understood from the text of a diploma of 93 CE: "(veterani) qui militaverunt Hierosolymnis in legione X Fretense", and it is also clear from epigraphic finds from the town. Israel Exploration Journal . 34 (4): 239– 254. The Bar Kokhba war reconsidered: new perspectives on the second Jewish revolt against Rome . The On-line Encyclopedia of the Roman Provinces . In Hershel Shanks (ed.). A Parallel History of their Origins and Early Development .

Part of the First Jewish–Roman War For the siege by Nebuchadnezzar that led to the destruction of the First Temple, see Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC) . The siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE was the decisive event of the First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE), a major rebellion against Roman rule in the province of Judaea . Led by Titus , Roman forces besieged the Jewish capital, which had become the main stronghold of the revolt. After months of fighting, they breached its defenses, destroyed the Second Temple , razed most of the city, and killed, enslaved, or displaced a large portion of its population. The fall of Jerusalem marked the effective end of the Jewish revolt and had far-reaching political, religious, and cultural consequences. In the winter of 69/70 CE, following a pause caused by the Roman succession war , the campaign in Judaea resumed as Titus led at least 48,000 troops—including four legions and auxiliary forces—back into the province. By spring, this army had encircled Jerusalem, whose population had surged with refugees and Passover pilgrims. Inside the city, rival factions led by John of Gischala , Simon bar Giora and Eleazar ben Simon fought each other, destroying food supplies and weakening defenses. Although the factions eventually united and mounted fierce resistance, Roman forces breached the city walls and pushed the defenders back into the temple precincts. When the Romans finally took the Temple Mount in the summer month of Av (July/August), they destroyed the Second Temple—an event mourned annually in Judaism on Tisha B'Av . The rest of Jerusalem fell soon after, with tens of thousands killed, enslaved, or executed. The Romans systematically razed the city, leaving only three towers of the Herodian citadel and sections of the wall to showcase its former greatness. A year later, Vespasian and Titus celebrated a triumph in Rome , parading temple spoils—including the menorah —and hundreds of captives. Monuments such as the Arch of Titus were erected to commemorate the victory. The destruction of Jerusalem and its temple marked a turning point in Jewish history . With sacrificial worship no longer possible, Judaism transformed, giving rise to Rabbinic Judaism focused on Torah study , good deeds and synagogue worship . The fall of the city also influenced early Christianity , accelerating its separation from Judaism. After the war, Legio X Fretensis established a permanent garrison on the ruins. Drawing inspiration from the earlier restoration of Jerusalem after the Babylonian destruction in 587/6 BCE, many Jews expected the eventual rebuilding of the city. In 130 CE, however, the Romans re-founded Jerusalem as Aelia Capitolina , a colony dedicated to Jupiter , dashing Jewish hopes for a restored temple and paving the way for another major Jewish rebellion—the Bar Kokhba revolt .